Preparation

For turkey:

Combine all ingredients in large pot. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until turkey is just cooked through, skimming foam, about 35 minutes. Transfer turkey to bowl; cover and chill. Strain and reserve broth in pot.

For chiles:

Heat 1/2 cup lard in large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, fry all chiles until beginning to blister and change color, about 15 seconds per side (do not burn). Using tongs and shaking off excess lard, transfer chiles to another large pot. Add 4 cups reserved turkey broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered until chiles are very soft, about 35 minutes. Strain liquid into 4-cup measuring cup; add enough reserved turkey broth to measure 4 cups. Chop chiles. Working in batches, puree chiles and 4 cups chile broth in blender until smooth.

Heat remaining 1/2 cup lard in same pot over medium heat until almost smoking. Press chile puree through large mesh strainer into pot (mixture will sputter and bubble vigorously). Stir until puree thickens enough to form path on bottom of pot when wooden spoon is drawn across, about 15 minutes. Remove chile puree from heat.

Add chocolate and piloncillo to mole; simmer over low heat 20 minutes, stirring often, scraping bottom of pot and adding more turkey broth (or chicken broth if necessary) by 1/2 cupfuls if mole is too thick (up to 2 cups more broth may be needed). Season with salt. Continue simmering over low heat until streaks of oil form on mole surface, about 10 minutes longer. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Cool slightly. Chill uncovered until cold, then cover and keep refrigerated. Rewarm over low heat, stirring and adding more broth if desired, before continuing.)

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Reviews

As far as I'm concerned this is THE Mole' recipe, others just read as lacking. Worth the time to assemble all the ingredients which I've been doing all month, and today managed to put the entire thing together in about 3 and 1/3 hours. Simmering on the stove now!
Also, mine is lardless as we don't eat pork. Veg oil and home made chicken stock to go with the left over Thanksgiving turkey from the freezer.
Kitchen items you'll need: 2 large stock pots, one large fry or everything pan, 1 blender, 1 spice grinder or mortar and pestle, a soup ladle, and a rubber spatula.
Recipe makes about 1 1/2 Gallons so assemble freezer quality tupperware for the leftovers!

First, I feel compelled to school the negative reviewer on mole: Mole was originally invented by indigenous peoples of Mexico, in an effort to provide nutrition to their families and friends, with what they had available. Not sadists. Not crazy people.
The other reviewers mentioned the work that goes into this dish. Complaining about the work that goes into this dish, and the odd ingredients, is not helpful as the work and ingredients are already listed in the recipe.
Each mole is different, because each cook has different ingredients available. You might not like this mole (though it sounds like you did not have confidence in your work), so you might try another.
But first, enjoy mole at a restaurant or an authentic dish in someone's home, so you understand the nature of mole sauce, and if you like it. It's helpful to be familiar with a complicated dish to gain context for taste and texture.
Here is a helpful link about the history of mole sauce: survivingmexico [dot]com has a good page on mole.
This recipe is delicious, I'd use it again. I do like to tweak with what I have on hand, rather than running to the store again. This time, I used raw agave syrup (Trader Joe's) instead of the sugar. I am serving vegetarians so I used water and coconut oil instead of broth and lard. Flavor seems very complex and delicious without the broth, so I may make it this way again for just ourselves.

So amazingly good. This is my third time making mole poblano, and my first using this recipe. This recipe is by far the best I have tried. I'm in the final simmer and already licking the spoon...I can only imagine how good it's going to be after a few days' flavor mingling, when we have it on enchiladas!
I only made the mole part of this recipe, not the turkey. I used chicken broth in place of turkey broth. I followed the mole recipe to a tee except that I forgot to buy pepitas, so I just subbed in more of the other nuts.
As everyone says, it takes a really really long time to make. This is special occasion food...Thanksgiving dinner-level. It's a labor of love and you wouldn't want it any other way.
My tips for least stress:
1. Check and re-check the recipe and ingredients list. Even though I live in a suburb of NYC with a ton of Mexican groceries around, they don't always have all the chiles, and you should not substitute. I also had to go back to the store for a lot of chicken broth because I wasn't making the turkey and didn't have the many cups of broth on hand.
2. If possible, make this well in advance of any occasion you plan to serve it. It doesn't suffer for being in the fridge or freezer for days or weeks, and definitely tastes better if you wait a day or two, minimum, to let the flavors mingle. I made it over a long weekend, spreading the steps out over two days so that it remained an enjoyable project. We'll end up eating it about 5 days after I started making it.
3. Make a double batch if you can muster up the faith in this recipe. I did and now I have a ton to save for me and BF, plus some to give to friends and family. I'll be set for months.

First off, I would like to warn everyone of the time needed to make this. For me it took a whole afternoon/evening, just to make the sauce (I finished the meal the next day). The straining part was what took the most time, I would recommend using a sifter.
Secondly, I do not recommend tasting it during the entire process, unless you like the taste of dried peppers. I kept tasting it looking for something to show for the hours I was spending and, to me, it tasted awful. But then I finished, took it off the heat and let it sit over night and ate it. I almost cried with relief.
Despite all of this grief, it was incredibly delicious, I made it with Pork instead of turkey (and used 4 cups of chicken broth and some chicken stock I made instead of turkey). It makes cups and cups of mole sauce so we only used a bit and then vacuum sealed and froze the rest (which I have just tossed the frozen sauce in the pot with some warm water and cooked meat)and it was still delicious.

I've had this recipe in my box for
months... finally found the time to
make it today while watching the NFL
playoffs. WOW.... It is truly
incredible. From the moment I
finished the initial step with the
chilis, I knew this was going to be
good. There are some unusal steps...
but just have faith and patience...
you will be rewarded. I can't wait
to see how this will taste in a few
days as leftovers based on the other
reviews!

I have to defend
this recipe. I think
the secret to
getting this right
is to making it a
day or two in
advance. I served it
to mi amigo from
Puebla on
Thanksgiving day and
he said it was good.
On day 3 we took it
out of the fridge
and heated up the
left overs and it
was so much better.
I bought all my
ingredients at a
Mexican market.

Making mole is such a deep culinary experience, that after all the energy to prepare you want it perfect. I made this recipw and thought it had WAY too much sugar...but I did it anyway. As well as ordered the book from whence it came.
Three days later when the book arrived-the recipe DID not have the 1/2 cup of sugar! Everything else was identical.
So...I will only add 1 tablespoon of the Mexican sugar next time, if that.
Epicurious is my main source of recipes (amd the magazines where they are first published, but I do not know what happened to this one.

I had never had mole before - but love most Mexican food. So based on the rave reviews here, I thought I would give this recipe a try for my gourmet group. HOWEVER, from the first step of frying & then boiling the chilies (which filled my house with such a VILE smell that it drove my family away) - to the last steps (fry a piece of french bread & then throw it in the blender???) . . . I was perplexed by the bizarre set of ingredients & steps to make this sauce. This may be "authentic" mole - but I would love to know what sadistic type of person first came up with this odd mixture of ingredients & complex steps? I agree with one previous reviewer who suggested NOT to taste this sauce until the very end. I kept on hoping that each successive set of ingredients would make the awful sauce taste better . . . but unfortunately it did not. I have to say the final product was OK (declared "edible" by my family, and "good" by my gourmet group), I would definitely NOT declare it good enough to make again. And I won't need to, because I ended up with gallons of the stuff - which oddly enough I couldn't get anyone from the group to take some home with them! I would suggest only making this sauce if you KNOW that you love mole sauce. Otherwise, it is probably not worth the effort.

Like most of the other reviewers, I would absolutely make this recipe again. It is truly the best mole I have ever eaten. Here are a couple of other tips though: there two sections of the recipe which ask you to strain the contents from the blender through a metal strainer into the pot. I would highly recommend straining the contents into a bowl first to save your arms (unless you are super strong, which I'm not). Also, make sure you do use gloves to clean the chilies because even though they are dry, they still have the capacity to sting the eyes (or in my case, the nose). Lastly, like the others, I ended up with alot of sauce left over which I froze and will plan on using the next time I have extra roast chicken or turkey. I will plan on making this though at least once a year.

As each process takes
20-30 minutes, it helps
to get several steps going
at once to lessen the
overall time spent on this
dish. While the recipe
does still take 3-4 hours,
the result is truly
scrumptious. I served this
with grilled
corn-on-the-cob topped
with chipotle sour cream
and red Mexican rice.
Also, there is quite a bit
more mole in the end
than necessary for the
amount of turkey, so I
popped some in the
freezer for a future treat.

stunningly
delicious. i took
this mole to a
church function (a
HISPANIC CHURCH
FUNCTION) and 3
women approached me
after to get the
recipe. as a
single white
male...this was a
bit presumptuous of
me to bring
hispanic food, but
the results were
definately worth
the time. if you
have a free day to
cook, MAKE THIS!!!!

Prior to making this recipe I had never tried making nor even tasting mole. Another reviewer described it as a spiritual experience. All I can say is "Boy, it's hard work." I started at 5pm and ended at 1am. However, based on the reviews received, everybody loved it, so that made it worth all the effort. I served it with the Kemp's Black Beans & Summer Rice Salad w/ Goat Cheese Dressing from this site. Modifications made were slight, chiefly I boiled a whole turkey and then shredded it. I also added boiled chicken to it to increase the meat to sauce ratio.
One word of warning, I brought the leftovers in to work while they all enjoyed it, EVERYBODY had an opinion, comparing it to their own family recipe. With so many ingredients and such complexity of flavor, you will be hard pressed to please everybody's palate.

I live in Guadalajara, Mexico. When I make this mole for my Mexican friends, they rave about it. It always takes about 4 hours to make, but it is a spiritual experience going through the whole process.

Although, I kept telling my friends to savor and really enjoy this mole because I'll will never agonize through this preparation again. I keep reminding myself that this is the BEST mole I've tasted by far. It made my Cinco de Mayo dinner party a huge hit, the turkey was so moist and the mole sublime. 4 days after my party and I still have friends emailing me they're dreaming of my mmmmmmmmmole. In short I have this distinct feeling I will be making this mole again. The up-side; the receipe made enough to freeze half for later use, when I'll be able to enjoy it once again without all that labor involved.

Four Students from my sons high school
Spanish class made this last night. It was
the best mole I have tasted! We bought
everything from a store with several bins.
We brought measuring cups and spoons
and measured everything in the store!
This saved so much time! We organized
everything in groups so each student
prepared a part of the recipe. Not only
did the kids make a very authentic dish,
they also learned many cooking
techniques.I was lucky to take a cooking
class
from Diana Kennedy, she told a story
about serving Mole in her restaurant.
One of her customers told her that they
had never tried Mole and wanted to know
if she baked or fried it and where can you
find fresh Mole or did she catch her own!

This dish tooke me approximately 4 hours to construct (not including shopping time, and many of these items could only be found at Whole Foods which is not close to me).
I have to agree with the other posters.. this is definitely worth the effort. I have never found ANY Mole recipe that tastes as authentic as this one. Also, the recipe is easily twice what you need for a turkey breast and would well with many other recipes, including the ancho-quajillo enchilda recipe on this site.
I would definitely make this again, and probably double the sauce since it's the same amount of work, and freeze it to use in all of my Mexican meals. It really is THAT good.

Yes, I would make this again and it was absolutely delicious, but I would leave out a few steps. I did not cook the chilies in the fat before simmering them in the liquid since the recipe called for dried chilies - there didn't seem much point in that step. I also would probably leave out the last step with the thickeners. I used Mexican chocolate, which already is quite sweet so I think I would cut the brown sugar down to 1/3 or 1/4 cup. The whole part with the chilies is the most time-consuming and I have trouble working with even dried chilies - sometimes even hard to breathe - wish there was a simpler way but I do think it was one of the reasons it was so fantastic. I used a metal strainer to sieve the chiles and pressed them through with a spoon which was VERY slow, but made for a nice smooth texture. The second time it called for using the sieve, I used a Foley food mill, which was quicker but ended up with more seeds. Is there a better solution? Lastly, I cooked 5 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and thighs instead of the turkey just because of my own preference. I shredded it and added it to the sauce before reheating. It was the right amount and was easy to serve.

One thing to add about the actual turkey. While I purchased a bone in full breast, next time I would purchase either turkey pieces, light and dark, or a whole small turkey. Why spend the money on the turkey breast only?

This will become a family favorite now. This dish is not as hard as it seems. I made it after work one night, but you do have to dedicate your evening. Do the shopping one night and the preparing the next. This was a wonderful experience and delicious as well. I followed the recipe exactly, except instead of all Mexican chocolate, I used some bittersweet chocholate as I had it around. Also, I did not cook the 1/2 cup oil into the chili puree, but next time I will. I think it will make the sauce more velvety.

This is the best mole I have ever tasted, and it is worth the time and effort to make it - especially because it makes a very large quantity which you can continue to enjoy if you freeze half of it. I did not make this all in one day, but split it up into three days, which made it easier. Day One: I bought all the ingredients, and prepped them. First I made the turkey broth by combining 2 boxes of all natural free range chicken broth with the onions and garlic and added water to equal 13 cups. While it was cooking, I prepped the chiles and put them in an air-tight container. I measure out all the nuts and put them in another air-tight container. For the fruits, I prepped the tomatoes and tomatillos, and combined them in an air-tight container with the raisins and put it in the refrigerator. For the flavorings, I cut up the onions and peeled the garlic cloves and put them in a separate air-tight container in the refrigerator. For the spices, I combined them all together, and without heating them, I ground them up together and put them in a bowl. For the thickeners, I even measured out the dark brown sugar, got the bread/tortillas out, and measured out the chocolate. Day Two: I completed the steps for the chilis and nuts and refrigerated it over night. Also, I did not pass the chili mixture through a sieve, which added a good texture in the end! Day Three: While the fruits were simmering, I heated the onion and garlic and completed that process and added it to the mole. At the exact time I finished that, the fruits were done, so I blended them and added them after. Then I added the spices and thickeners at the end. In all, it took about 1.5 hours on day one and day two. It took about 2 hours on day three. When we tasted it, we were absolutely thrilled with everything, especially the complexity of the flavor, which continues to blossom and express itself on your palate for a full minute after the first taste. This recipe will not disappoint you!

This is fantastic! Definitely worth the huge amount of time. My only suggestion is DON'T taste the sauce until everything is in the pot! Until you get all the ingredients together, it's actually pretty bad. Had a hard time finding all the chilies, but luckily there are several Hispanic markets fairly close. Definitely use Mexican chocolate; the wonderful flavors of cinnamon/nuttiness make all the difference in the world.

We love mole and we've eaten it at several restaurants and venues and tried many recipes ourselves. The process of making it is one fun way to spend a day! So, it wasn't the work involved in this recipe that makes me say I wouldn't make it again, as it is no more work than other mole recipes. It was that we thought the mole itself was good but not as good as some others we've made, such as those by Rick Bayless in his "Mexico One Plate at a Time" cookbook. So, good recipe, we're glad we tried it. We'd recommend it to others to try it, but it didn't end up in the "keep file" at our hosue.

This recipe is, in a word, perfection. I have had several authentic moles in slow food restaurants and this ranks with the best of them on our first attempt. Yes, it takes about six hours start to finish, yes the techniques require you to pay close attention and yes, the mess is daunting . . . but, yes, yes, yes, it is worth it all. My husband and I preapred this dish together and having a second pair of hands is very helpful. Pick a lazy day, make this mole, invite friends over the next night for dinner and you will be hailed a great chef. FYI, great drink accompianments are the jamaica margaritas from Bon Appetit, or the fresh lemon/lime margaritas from Cooks Illustrated.com.